.jpg?width=1200)
Dmitri Shostakovich
said
You ask if I would have been different without "Party guidance"? Yes, almost certainly.
— In conversation with Flora Litvinova, 1970; cited from Elizabeth Wilson Shostakovich: A Life Remembered (1994) pp. 425-6.
Dmitri Shostakovich
Soviet composer and pianist (1906-1975)
- Fame71.8
- Momentum10.0
- Musicians rank#164
Source-basedStable
- Fame71.8
- Momentum10.0
- Musicians rank#164
- Wikipedia92.8K
Lived 1906–1975, aged 69
MusiciansSinger / Musician
Network
In their orbit
People connected to Dmitri Shostakovich
Summary
Updated 2026-06-08
He wrote under Stalin's gaze, balancing symphonies that could be read as triumph or quiet subversion. Each premiere was a test: would the state hear allegiance or dissent?
Biography
About
Shostakovich arrived at 19 with his First Symphony in 1926, instantly marking him as a major composer in the young Soviet Union. His 1934 opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk succeeded until the government condemned it, putting his career in jeopardy. The Zhdanov Doctrine denounced his work again in 1948, bringing professional consequences that lasted years, though his censure was rescinded in 1956. He held seats in the Supreme Soviet and chaired the RSFSR Union of Composers, earning Orders of Lenin, even as state interventions shadowed performances like his Thirteenth Symphony in 1962. He left 15 sy…
Voice
In their own words
Sourced, dated quotes from Dmitri Shostakovich
Dmitri Shostakovich
said
The real geniuses know where their writing has to be good and where they can get away with some mediocrity.
— In conversation with Isaac Glikman, July 4, 1966; Josiah Fisk & Jeff Nichols (eds.) Composers on Music (1997) p. 355.
Dmitri Shostakovich
said
Real music is always revolutionary, for it cements the ranks of the people; it arouses them and leads them onward.
— "The Power of Music" (1964), translated in Music Journal, September 1965, p. 37.
Dmitri Shostakovich
said
A creative artist works on his next composition because he is not satisfied with his previous one. When he loses a critical attitude toward his own work, he ceases to be an artist.
— New York Times, October 25, 1959.
Dmitri Shostakovich
said
A great piece of music is beautiful regardless of how it is performed.
— Letter to Isaac Glikman, August 28, 1955; Josiah Fisk & Jeff Nichols (eds.) Composers on Music (1997) p. 364.
Gallery
Photos
8 images · refresh overdue
Press play
Listen & Watch
Spotify
Deep cuts
Albums
Low confidence
- Piano Trios1988
- Symphony no. 11 in G minor, op. 1031988
- Symphony no. 7 "Leningrad"1988
- Shostakovich: Sonata for Violin and Piano, op. 134 / Franck: Sonata for Violin and Piano in A major1988
- Symphony no. 7, the "Leningrad"1988
- Beethoven: Op. 135 / Schostakowitsch Op. 1441988
- Britten, Shostakovich: Sonatas for Cello and Piano / Prokofiev: Ballad, op. 151988
- Symphnie nr. 101988
- Symphony no. 4 in C, op. 43 / Suite no. 1 for Jazz Orchestra1988
- Symphony no. 11 “The Year 1905”1988
Where to find them
Platforms
By the numbers
Score breakdown
The six component signals behind the Fame score, and their ranks across the leaderboards.
Fame
Stable71.8
Composite of search demand, mentions, audience & graph footprint.
Score components
Momentum10.0
Historical27.3
Now attention44.2
Source confidence75.0
Completeness75.0
Receipts
Sources
- WikipediaHigh confidencewikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
- WikidataHigh confidencewikidata · wikidata.org
- Pantheon 2.0High confidencedatabase · pantheon.world
Discover
You might know
Similar profiles worth watching
_(contrast).jpg)
01.jpg?width=1200)
.png?width=1200)
